Anita Bryant Dies: Singer, Orange Juice Pitchwoman & Anti-Gay Campaigner Was 84
deadline.comAnita Bryant, a Grammy nominated singer, TV personality and orange juice pitchwoman whose show business career was submerged in the public eye by her anti-gay crusades of the late 1970s, died December 16 at her home in Edmond, Oklahoma.
She was 84. Her death was announced in an obituary in The Oklahoman. A cause of death was not revealed. Born on March 25, 1940, in Barnsdall, Oklahoma, Bryant grew up in a devoutly Christian family, with her love of music and singing leading to her own TV show at the age of 12, according to the obituary.
At 18 she was crowned Miss Oklahoma, and would soon appear on the CBS variety show hosted by Arthur Godfrey and the Dick Clark-hosted American Bandstand.
Her chart hits in the late 1950s and early 1960s included “Till There Was You,” “Paper Roses,” “In My Little Corner of the World,” and “Wonderland by Night.” A regular on Bob Hope’s holiday tours of military bases abroad, Bryant sang at the White House for President Lyndon B.
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